Local Color
Sunday, April 29, 2001
THE HONOLULU ACADEMY of Arts has been a hotbed of activity all week with hundreds of gardeners putting finishing touches to a grand flower and horticulture competition presented by the Garden Club of Honolulu. Academy goes from
flowers to opening
of new complex"Let me tell you, it's been like Grand Central Station around here," says Charlie Aldinger, academy director of public relations.
Academy Director George Ellis was so busy that he was a day late in giving a Secretary's Day pikake lei to his secretary, Li Hall, who has worked at the academy for 52 years. Better late than never, he says.
This will be a super-busy weekend at the academy as several thousand visitors are expected to see the floral displays. Today is the last day for the show, which is filling the galleries with fragrance.
It doesn't look like things will be letting up for a while as the academy staff gears up for the May opening of the new Henry R. Luce Pavilion Complex, which includes new galleries, a gift shop and a cafe.
The new facilities, designed by Hawaii architect John Hara, will be unveiled to the public May 13. A ho'ike celebrating the opening with Hawaiian music, arts and crafts demonstrations, games and keiki art activities is scheduled for May 19 and 20.HERE'S A LITTLE preview of the nearly completed $25 million project, which began in September 1999.
A 60-foot-long water feature and huge ceramic sculptures inspired by Japanese dumplings are already in place fronting the John Dominis and Patches Damon Holt Gallery. The gallery will house the academy's renowned permanent Hawaiian art collection.
The water feature also is permanent, but the sculptures, by internationally sought-after ceramist Jun Kaneko, are temporary. Kaneko is known for his large-scale, boldly patterned and brightly colored ceramic work, and the sculptures will be part of his upcoming exhibit at the academy. He will be adding more outdoor sculptures at the academy's front lawn and central court.
A show of contemporary artists of Hawaiian descent is coming together nicely in the new Henry R. Luce Gallery, named after the Time magazine publisher. It's right next door to the existing Clare Boothe Luce Gallery, named after his equally famous and competitive wife.
"When all of this is finished, we'll have matching husband and wife galleries -- his and hers," Aldinger says. But this time she was there first.
A new Academy Shop, where the Garden Cafe used to be, will have a contemporary Hawaiian ambience with dark mahogany wood cabinets. It more than doubles the academy's retail space.The cafe is relocated across the way to what used to be the sculpture garden. The large red Persian travertine sculpture by Isamu Noguchi that used to be the star attraction in the garden will be moved tomorrow to become the outdoor focal point in the pavilion.
"Red Untitled" will be placed in a bamboo forest setting at the end of the 60-foot-long water feature. The move, involving large forklifts, is expected to cause traffic delays beginning at 1 p.m. tomorrow along Ward Avenue and Kinau and Victoria streets.
And congratulations to Dorothy Oshiro, state education liaison at the academy. Oshiro, who has been arranging free tours of the academy for some 25,000 schoolchildren every year for 30 years, has been chosen the Hawaii Art Educator of the Year by the National Art Education Association.
NOT THAT WE WISH Mark Alan Chai any heartaches, but if having a broken heart got him back to his first love -- wood sculptures -- then the suffering has paid off handsomely in the form of six wood sculptures on display at the Queen Emma Gallery.
The exhibit, "Leap of Faith," opens today with a reception from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. It runs through May 27. Call 538-9011.Chai has been known for lamps and other functional art made from recycled materials gathered mostly from Queen's Medical Center, where he works as a patient transporter. But for this exhibit he wanted to get back to making art that served no purpose other than pleasing him.
His lamps are still available at Following Sea at Kahala Mall. Lamps by two other artists also are on view in a new exhibit at Artmosphere Gallery.
"Turn Ons" features lamps made of photographs by Dorys Foltin, and box lamps with photocopied cartoon images by Rich Richardson.
The show does not have a scheduled ending date. Call 525-5200 for more information.
Gardening Calendar
Suzanne Tswei's art column runs Sundays in Today.
You can write her at the Star-Bulletin,
500 Ala Moana, Suite 7-210, Honolulu, HI, 96813
or email stswei@starbulletin.com
